Janne Hea - Wishing Well

Last night I attended an amazing concert with the very gifted singer/songwriter Janne Hea. Although Norwegian she sounds like she's born and reared in the hills of Kentucky or Tennessee, with The Carter Family, Dolly Parton and Ricky Skaggs as her mother's milk. With a haunting voice she sings her melancholic songs as if standing in the deepest hollers, aided by co-writers and musicians Torgeir Waldermar on acoustic guitar and Mari Skeie Ljones on fiddle. The trio is absolutely gorgeous to listen to, and Ljones' fiddle is probably what really makes the music stand out as something genuinely special and exciting. The lonesome sound of her strings grabs the songs, lifts them up and about, making them fly into the air, before returning them to the ground where they meet up again with Hea's voice and Waldermar's ever-steady, almost metronomical guitar work. They did the wonderful "Wishing Well", the title track from Hea's 2014 debut album, to be listened to and watched below, as well as covers like Mary Gauthier's beautiful "I Drink" and Darrell Scott's dark masterpiece "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive". Check out Hea's album in WiMP or Spotify, and while you're at it you should also listen to Torgeir Waldemar's eponymous debut album that was also released last year, in WiMP or Spotify. They're both pretty awesome.

Watch and listen